dark future - legand of lone star 1

ATOMIC HIGHWAY

DARK FUTUREThe Apocalpse then Campaign

The Legand of Lone Star (Part I)Version 1.1

The Legend of Lone Star – Part I is an ‘Apocalypse Then’campaign scenario set in Arkansas, for PCs that havealready played through the Scenario Hero’s Maid. Itprovides a critical Plot Point for the Atomic Highway:Dark Future Apocalypse Then campaign. It assumes thatthe PCs are Sanctioned Operatives, and have somemode of transport.

A Little HistoryThe Cherokee named Lone Star first came to nationalattention in 1993, when he was a popular insurrectionistin the ‘The Casino Conflicts’, where the Cherokeenation clashed with the National Guard over governmentattempts to shut down illegal Cherokee gambling dens.He and his brother led a campaign of terror onGovernment forces, clashing with the US Cavalry andeven the Feds. This campaign ended a year later,following the death of Lone Star’s brother by the PlagueRider Gangcult of Illinois. Lone Star then earned himselfan amnesty by joining the Sanctioned Operative agencythe St Louis Blues, who were recruiting outlaws to takethe fight to the Plague Riders. This was not popular withmany citizens of St Louis, as Lone Star had a reputationfor savagery in his campaign of vengeance against thePlague Riders, and many felt he would not conform toagency’s rules of engagement. Nevertheless, Lone Starproved one of the St Louis blues most successfuloperatives, until his disappearance a few weeks ago. Hislast known location was an encounter with the PlagueRiders on the Interstate 44, just outside of Springfield.Some say he was killed, but as his Interceptor was neverfound, his fellow operative Jules Mason has been lookingfor the missing Cherokee ever since.

SetupThis scenario starts with the PCs talking to Jules Mason,a Sanctioned Operative who is part of the St Louis Bluesagency based in Missouri. This can either be introducedbecause Jules Mason directly contacts the PCs, orbecause the PCs decide to ask around about the PlagueRiders (see Hero’s Maid) and are told that Mason hasalso been asking a lot of questions about the gangrecently. Either way, Mason arranges to meet them inthe Bartertown of Springfield, or alternatively the Filterof Chicago or St Louis if the PCs prefer somewhere moresecure. He Mason will explain that he has been ordered

Jules MasonOriginally, a Private detective hailing from thePoliced Zone of Miami, Jules Mason was always aloner, who had difficulties with corporateauthority. Forced out of the city due to Mafiacorruption, he found a new home in St. Louis,where he is instrumental in preventing Mafiainfluence spreading. Unlike most of the Blues, hecan normally be found operating solo, engaged ininvestigation rather than combat.

Rearing: Remnant (Miami PolicedZone)Pursuit: SentinelMuscle 2Understanding 3Tenacity 3Appeal 2Nimbleness 2Toughness 3Senses 3Skills: Athletics 2, Brawl 2, Drive 2, Heal 1,Intimidate 2, Lore 3, Melee 2, Notice 3, Persuade3, Shoot 2, Shoot 3, Stealth 2, Tech 2

Attacks: As Weapon / Armour: 2 / Health: 16Armour: Light (Ballistic Kevleather Jacket)Weapons: Heavy Handgun, Nightstick (MediumBludgeon), Knife

Gear: St. Louis Police Uniform, Binoculars, Gasmask, Geiger counter

Customised G-Mec InterceptorMuscle 3Nimbleness 3Toughness 2Speed 4Passengers: DriverArmour: 8Weapons: Heavy Machine Gun (fixed, forward), twinLight Grenade Launcher (linked, fixed, forward),twin Light Machine Gun (linked, fixed, rear)

Customisations: Onboard Computer, Oil SlickDispenser

Health: 75

Atomic Highway - Legand of Lone Star

to drop his investigation into what happened to LoneStar by his superiors, due to other needs on his agenciestime. However, he has one last lead that he has notfollowed, and wants to hire the PCs agency to chase itup on his behalf. He offers $12,000 for the location ofLone Star or evidence to what happened to him. If thePCs agree, he will reveal that his lead is that he hasbeen informed that a man named Milton Durgher wasasking around about Lone Star in a place calledFayetteville, located somewhere in the west ofArkansas.

Act OneFayetteville, Arkansas is a so-called ‘Safetown’, theclosest thing many states have to a PolicedZone. Whilethere is no Corporation presence here, the town’scouncil have spent a small fortune on protection, andthe whole town has many modern resources, such asrunning water and Datanet access. Fayetteville isreachable by road, following the Interstate 540.However, this road is badly marinated and north ofFayetteville, it is little more than a dirt track in places.A large motel and gas station stands at the heart of thetown, the converted remains of a University. In commonwith most of the businesses in Arkansas, the motel issegregated and has separate foyers for ‘Whites’ and‘Non-Whites’. It is technically against the states rulesfor the two groups to visit or stay in the others rooms,although no one at the motel enforces this. A non-segregated branch of MacDee stands between the twofoyers, which sponsors the motel’s security staff. Askingaround town about Lone Star will just draw blank looks,although asking about Milton Durgher will have moresuccess. Indeed, almost everyone in town seems toknow of ‘Weird Milton’, and will mention he can befound at Maxine's Tap Room. Maxine's Tap Room is anancient building, with only one tiny window and a 50-foot long bar that stretches nearly the entire length ofthe building. The bar caters for the rougher element ofthe town’s populace, most of who wear FayettevilleMilitia badges on their jackets. Milton Durgher drinkshere most nights, between around 5pm until 11pm. Heis not popular among the other townsfolk, who knowhim as a liar, coward and general snivelling cur. Ifpressed, Milton will confess that Leo Forrest has paidhim to spy on the citizens of Fayetteville - in particular,Milton is to look out for a Native American named LoneStar and tell Forrest immediately should he show up intown. None of the regulars in the bar will aid Miltonagainst the PCs, regardless of what threats they make,although they will intervene to stop actual torture. IfMilton is made to confess in front of witnesses, thelocals will administer a beating to him as soon as thePCs are out of sight. Asking around Fayetteville aboutLeo Forrest will reveal that he is the local leader of the

America Alone Alliance Army, who have a camp at placecalled Ponca to east of Fayetteville, deep in the OzarkMountains. Most folk have a low opinion of the AmericaAlone Alliance Army, generally regarding them asdangerous out-of-towners.

Act TwoThe PCs arrival in Fayetteville and questioning aboutMilton Durgher has not gone unnoticed and when theyreturn to the Motel (or wherever else they parked theirvehicles), they will find a message from a man namedAloysius Hym, who requests to meet them in his motelroom. If they decide to meet him, Aloysius Hym is asmall tidy man, who looks to be in his 30s, but styleshimself much older. He is dressed in an out of fashionsuit and speaks with a precise educated New Yorkaccent. Hym will ask if they are looking for a NativeAmerican. If they reply in the affirmative, he will saythat he saw a group of A4 thugs kill a Native Americanwhile driving here from Little Rock two days ago, andthat the Native American had an expensive blue car,which he thought had a sign on it saying it was from StLouis. He will offer his commiserations, and say hehopes he did not witness the execution of their friend.

Secrets and LiesAloysius Hym saw no such thing, and his entire tale is apack of lies from start to finish. Hym is actually fromPhiladelphia not New York, and is a member ofIlluminated Brethren of the Silver Twilight, a rivalGangcult to A4. His objective here is to close down theinvestigation into Lone Star, by convincing the PCs thatLone Star is dead. If the PCs decide to investigateAloysius Hym further, they will quickly find he seldomleaves his room. A Datanet search will turn up that aDoctor Aloysius Hym is a Reader in cultural history atthe University of Pennsylvania. If the characters decideto break in or confront Hym (Apocalypse Cultist, page100), all the interesting information is contained withinhis Briefcase (see the Conclusion).

Optional Encounter

HyksosThe Hyksos (Raiders, page 103) are among the largestcykegangs in North Arkansas, centred on the renegadeBartertown of Jonesboro, northwest of Memphis. ThePCs could run into a group of five to ten Hyksos almostanywhere while travelling in Arkansas. While thiscykegang has no love of Sanctioned Operatives or A4,this group is actually scouting the area followingrumours that a Missouri Gangcult has recently crossedthe Arkansas border in large numbers, and will notattack the PCs unless provoked. The leader of eachscouting party will have a $4,000 bounty.


Act ThreeA group called the ‘America Alone Alliance Army’ or A4controls most of this region of Arkansas, andFayetteville is one of the few Bartertowns that theorganisation has not yet taken over. They have severalbases scattered around the barren Ozark Mountains,which that cover northern Arkansas and southernMissouri. The United States Government officiallycategorises A4 as a Terrorist organisation, although theirideology of freeing America from the JapCorps and Pan-Islamic Congress is very popular with many Americancitizens.A4 have established a base at Ponca in an abandonedPark Ranger compound, with ferrocrete offices,barracks and medi-centre forming its heart, along witha two wooden dormitories, for male and femaleIndentured Servants, either side of a brick built toiletand shower block. Barbed wire fences surround thecompound, with wooden towers at each corner. Acorrugated iron barn lies at one end of an airstrip,which lies under sand covered tarpaulins, to conceal itspresence from satellite photography. However, when thePCs arrive the camp is far from in perfect condition, assome force has clearly already stormed it. A4 securityforces and guard dogs lie dead on the ground, and bulletholes riddle the scorched buildings. Alongside them aredead Gangcultists from the Plague Riders, who appearto have been the attackers. If the PCs wish toinvestigate further, they may search the followinglocations:

Offices: In the foyer of the office block is a dead man,hung by a noose as if he had been lynched. His A4uniform proclaims him as General Leo Forrest, thehighest-ranking body the PCs will encounter. Theraiders have smashed the buildings computerequipment before setting it on fire. One of thedownstairs doors is reinforced and has an eye andstar symbol embossed into it. The raiders havecovered the door in the most obscene graffiti,although have been careful not to scrawl upon theembossed sign. PCs can open this door with bruteforce [an Arduous (3) Muscle roll], equipment [aMuscle/Tech roll], Lockpicking [a Nimbleness/Criminal roll] or using the key, which rests in GeneralLeo Forrest’s pocket. Behind it runs a set of stairsdescending to a cellar.

Office Cellar: The cellar leads down into a small roomcarved out of the bedrock, which seems to be someform of primitive temple. Red drapes emblazonedwith Swastikas and Imperial Eagles line the wall. Atthe far end, a three-headed totem pole stands carvedfrom stone, with the heads of an eagle, a human skulland a cyclopean bat, running from top to bottom. A

Kris knife and bronze bowl full of dried blood rest ona small table, alongside a carefully placed Sim-Chip(see the Conclusion). If the PC’s took any of the ritualparaphernalia, such as the Totem Pole, they may beable to find a buyer who will pay $500 to get hold ofit (for example, Papa Wedo from the Samadhi NightFever Scenario).

Barracks: All the members of A4 seem to have slept inthese barracks, which has individual small rooms. Theraiders have clearly been here, and have taken themajority of effects. Several corpses rest here, manyare dismembered.

Medi-centre: The raiders have forced open everycupboard and case in the medi-centre with brutalforce. What has not been looted has been smashed,while purple and green graffiti has been sprayed overthe walls. This takes the form of crude images of thebiohazard sign, skulls and phrase ‘Plague Riders’.Additionally, one of the cupboards has a small traprigged up inside it, and if opened a spring loadeddevice will fire a syringe at the forehead of who everopened it (i.e. the first person to search the room).This requires an Arduous (3) Dodge reaction to avoid,and does 4L Damage if it hits. If injured the PC mustseek medical attention or, after a number of daysequal to his Toughness have passed, will suffer fromviolent sickness.

Dormitories: The squalor of the dormitories predatesthe fore raiding the compound and of all thebuildings, the dormitories seem to have taken theleast damage. Shackled lie discarded here, cutthrough by bolt cutters.

Showers: The showers here are clearly only for use bythe Indentured Servants, although they are farcleaner than the dormitories. Anyone thoroughlysearching the equipment in the shower block canmake a Senses/Tech roll. Success allows them torealise that the Showers have a somewhat unusualfeature – at a flick of a switch, the showers willdispense Poison Gas rather than water. The gas isstored as a green liquid in three large plasticcontainers. Each of these is worth around $3,000 onthe Black Market, but transporting them could proveproblematic (Unless properly secured, there is a onein six chance of a container rupturing during anyvehicle combat or other particularly bumpy ride).

Barn: The barn is really a hanger, but the raiders havealready extensively stripped it of tools and fuel. Thewreckage of a small executive jet rests here, nowbereft of fuel tanks, seats and equipment.

PCs Scavenging from the base can roll on any tableapart from Medical.


Optional Encounter

GowrowAttracted by the smell of carrion, an Ozark Gowrow hasmade its way to the Ponca base. Sensing the PCs, itdecides they are rival scavengers, who must be forcedfrom its territory. The Gowrow will fight until it isreduced to half health or until the PCs flee the area. Ifconfronted with Firearmes, it will use its burrow abilityto strike at the PCs from underground.

Act FourThis encounter occurs if the PCs met with Aloysius Hymand return to Fayetteville after their expedition toPonca. To encourage this, you may wish to point outthat Fayetteville is the closest safe place to buysupplies, and is on the closest decent road to the A4base. If the PCs do choose to return to Fayetteville,they will be quickly be told that the town Sheriff T.Helder wants to see them in his offices. If the PCs dosee him, he will tell them that someone has murderedAloysius Hym in his room. An unknown assailant shotHym through the head, although Sheriff Helder found acustom-made black calling card with the image of twoentwined red roses on the corpse. With an

The gowrow

Gowrow were discovered in the Ozarks in the early1980s, when it is speculated that the climatechange drive them to become increasinglydesperate for food. Twenty foot long marsupiallizards with prominent curving tusks, Gowrowburrow through the earth emerging only to attackcattle or similar large animals, although attackson humans are uncommon. Soft-shelled Gowroweggs are as large as beer-barrels and are an Ozarkdelicacy.

Muscle 6Understanding 0Tenacity 3Appeal 0Nimbleness 3Toughness 5Senses 2/6Skills: Athletics 3, Brawl 3, Intimidate 5, Notice 3,Stealth 1

Attacks: Bite (8L) / Armour: 2 / Health: 42Mutations/Abilities: Armoured, Burrow*, Enduring,Enhanced Sense (Smell), Natural Weapon (Bite),Night Vision

Flaws: Selective Diet (Carnivore)*Denotes an Ability or Flaw from Irradiated Freaks

Understanding/Criminal roll, a PC will recognise this asthe calling card of a Mob Hitman called Siccario, whoworks out of Chicago. PCs can also obtain thisinformation from the Datanet. Aloysius Hym did notleave many possessions behind, but there is a briefcasein the Motel’s vault. As Hym did not leave the address ofany relatives, and as the PCs are the only people heseemed to make contact with, the Sheriff is prepared tolet them have the briefcase (see the Conclusion) for asmall ‘administration fee’ of $100.

ConclusionAt the end of this scenario, the PCs should haveobtained at least one of the two key pieces ofinformation, either the Sim-Chip from the hiddentemple at the A4 base or the Suitcase carried byAloysius Hym.

The Sim-ChipThis chip contains General Leo Forrest’s diary andassorted notes, along with recordings of variousspeeches he has made. Most of these are on the themeof how the common America can break the chainsimposed by international forces of oppression.Interesting comments in the diary include:That a week ago, a strange Cherokee ambushed an A4lieutenant and obtained from him information thatthe tablets are still in Philadelphia (Forrest had thelieutenant flogged).

That President North’s sale of Utah to the Brethren ofJoseph has led to A4 lawyers looking at the possibilityof purchasing the Ozarks.

That a Sanctioned Operative from the Shogun agencynamed Madam Butterfly has been covertly taking outA4 forces in California and reinforcements arerequired.

The BriefcaseAloysius Hym seemed to dislike computers andeverything in this briefcase is good old-fashioned penand paper. Interesting notes include:A carbon copy of a letter addressed to a man namedHeinz, stating that Lone Star has departed toPennsylvania, presumably to seek the tablets.

That Hym has made contact has been made with anindependent Sanctioned Operative named Jansen EDavis, to offer funding into his personal vendettaagainst Calimero Mauro [an Understanding/Criminalroll will allow a PC to identify Mauro as a prominentboss of the Chicago Mob].

The most recent note refers to the PCs themselves,stating that they have arrived in Fayetteville lookingfor Lone Star and that Hym should check to see ifthey were from the Agency involved in the problemwith the Horatio Grant issue.

Armed with this information, the PCs will probablyeither wish to report in to Mason with what they havefound, or continue to follow Lone Star by heading toPhiladelphia, possibly to seek whatever the tablets arethat Lone Star is trying to find. Assuming the hand overthe information, Mason will be happy to pay them$12,000 for their work so far, and offer them the sameagain if they pursue their lead to Philadelphia, and willthrow in paid for Ram-Track tickets to Philadelphia as anencouragement. If asked about the other items, he canconfirm that Mauro is a Mob Boss, has heard of theShogun Agency but not Madam Butterfly and believesthat Jansen E Davis has some issue with the ChicagoPolice.

EpilogueThe key piece of information the PCs need to come outof this scenario is that Lone Star is hunting down a setof tablets in Philadelphia. This information can beinferred from Leo Forrest’s Sim-Chip or the informationin Aloysius Hym’s briefcase. While the PCs may wish toimmediately follow this information up by proceeding toPhiladelphia (see Part II), it is also entirely possible thatthe PCs will intend to pause or end their investigation atthis point, to pursue other matters.

Media AttentionIf the PCs decide to go public with information aboutthe shrine they found in the A4 compound basement,the media will have a field day about the Naziconnection and the PCs will be offered a TV Appearanceor a Magazine Interview to discuss it. The cult elementwill be ignored, and A4 representatives with argue thatthe whole thing as a smear campaign, calling LeoForrest as an unrepresentative madman who was fundedby anti-American forces. After a week of pressure,President North will announce that an investigation hasbeen set up to look into the matter – at which point themedia will lose interest. This earns any PC intervieweda point of Kudos, along with the enmity of the whole A4organisation.

Meeting the MobIf the players have contacts with the Chicago Mob, theymay wish to find out why Siccario killed Aloysius Hym orget more information upon Jansen E Davis and his feudwith Calimero Mauro. These two matters are related, asMauro dispatched Siccario precisely because Hym wasfunding Davis’ activities. Davis was once a member ofthe Chicago Operations Policecorp, before he waskicked out for exposing a dozen members of the forcewho were in Mauro’s pocket.


Credits

Written by Alexander J BatemanAtomic Highway by Colin ChapmanDark Future by Richard Halliwell and Mark GascoigneScenario based on Ideas by Dean Bass, Graeme Davisand James Swallow

Playtested by James Day, Sarah McClennan, DavePerry and Ian Wilson

‘Atomic Highway’ Copyright Radioactive Ape Designs.‘Dark Future’ Copyright Games Workshop Ltd 2000-2011,variably registered in the UK and other countries aroundthe world. Atomic Highway and Dark Future usedwithout permission. No challenge to their statusintended. All Rights Reserved to their respectiveowners.

dark future - legand of lone star 1

Documents